EXPERT CLEANING TIPS FOR COMBATTING FALL ALLERGIES

MEMPHIS, TN, September 18, 2012 ― The Fall season is just around the corner and that means tough times for allergy sufferers. Sure the falling leaves and beautiful sunsets are perfect this time of year but it can sometimes be hard to enjoy the bliss of Autumn through a veil of watery eyes and the hail of sneezes.

The cleaning experts at Merry Maids have some important tips and things that anyone can incorporate into their cleaning routines to combat against the fall allergies. Among the tips are three major key things according to Merry Maids Cleaning Expert, Debra Johnson:

“ Fall is always dryer than spring. So naturally a lot of dust is in the house. You have to Microfiber dust, Steam and Vacuum,” says Johnson.

“Microfiber captures dust, because of this you can use less product and save tons more time. Steam of course is the best option because it uses hot water, mix that with a microfiber and you are in great shape. Steam just magnifies your cleaning process in a huge way. Vacuuming is a very important thing to do especially using one with a HEPA filter.”

Full List of Tips to Combat Fall Allergies

• Change your filters around the house (AC/Heat).
• Window washing is great to do this time of year in most climates.
• Move heavy furniture and clean underneath.
• Choose natural cleaning products to avoid chemicals that may cause or exacerbate allergy-like symptoms.
• If you suffer from allergies, always wear a mask when dusting or cleaning dusty places. Better yet, delegate a family member or call us to do it for you.
• Even if you are just doing light housework, wear house clothes and launder them in hot water to kill mites, and shower immediately afterwards. You don’t want to have any breathing-inhibitors hitchhiking on your body or your street clothes.
• Invest in a high quality vacuum with a HEPA filter. Unlike regular vacuum cleaners, ones with HEPA filters trap dust and particles rather than redistribute them into the air.
• Pay particular attention to bedrooms where you ideally spend about eight hours of your time on any given day. At least once a week, wipe down bed frames and headboards as well as any other furniture or knick-knacks in the room with a damp cloth.
• Mattress and pillow encasements will help control dust mites but you should also launder bedding in hot water monthly to kill the little critters.
• Do you have children? Wash their Stuffed animals as they are all major dust mite magnets, too. Wash stuffed animals by tossing them in a pillowcase and tying it closed.
• Steam your bathrooms, mattresses, throw pillows, and floors.
• Perfect time of year to vacuum your drapes, especially if you didn’t do it in the springtime.
• Best time to schedule a carpet cleaning.
• Dust all your baseboards.

For other tips and cleaning advice, especially on allergy proofing your home, head to the Merry Maids Facebook page where tricks and tips are given out daily to fans. You can also follow Merry Maids on Twitter at @MerryMaids.

About Merry Maids
Merry Maids is the largest home cleaning franchise network in the world. Merry Maids provides services in 49 states and the District of Columbia through approximately 70 company-owned locations and 400 franchised outlets. The company also provides home cleaning services in Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom and has licensing arrangements whereby licensees provide these services in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia and Australia. Through its company-owned and franchise locations, Merry Maids employs more than 8,000 home cleaning professionals that service homes on four continents, including more than 325,000 homes in North America every month. Merry Maids is a subsidiary of The ServiceMaster Company, one of the world's largest residential and commercial service networks. The company’s brands include Terminix, TruGreen, American Home Shield, ServiceMaster Clean, Merry Maids, Furniture Medic and AmeriSpec. Go to www.merrymaids.com for more information about Merry Maids or follow us at twitter.com/MerryMaids and facebook.com/MerryMaids.

About ServiceMaster
With a global network of more than 6,900 company-owned, franchised and licensed locations, Memphis-based ServiceMaster is one of the world's largest residential and commercial service networks. The company's high-profile brands are Terminix, TruGreen, American Home Shield, ServiceMaster Clean, Merry Maids, Furniture Medic and AmeriSpec. Through approximately 21,000 corporate associates and a franchise network that independently employs over 31,000 additional people, the ServiceMaster family of brands provided services and products to approximately 8.4 million customers during the last twelve months. Our market-leading brands provide a range of residential and commercial services including termite and pest control; lawn, tree and shrub care; home warranties and preventative maintenance contracts; furniture repair; home inspections; home cleaning; janitorial services; and disaster restoration. Go to www.servicemaster.com for more information about ServiceMaster or follow us at twitter.com/ServiceMaster or facebook.com/TheServiceMasterCo.

For More Information:

Gina Kamler                                                Kevin Coll          
901-597-1380                                             901-597-7438
gina.kamler@servicemaster.com             kcoll@merrymaids.com

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